


Are you afraid of dogs?

by MissPygmyPie



Category: The Smoke (TV)
Genre: Dennis is afraid of dogs, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Other, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, but he has a crush, for weeks lol, spying on his dream girl
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-10
Updated: 2018-10-10
Packaged: 2019-07-29 02:07:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16254488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissPygmyPie/pseuds/MissPygmyPie
Summary: Request: I love your writing, Dennis and animals - an imagine that combines the three would be amazing! In The Smoke, he mentioned his fear of dogs, so I thought what would happen if he sees a pretty girl walking her dog in a park next to the fire station. Every morning before work, he passes by and would really like to get to know her, but he’s too scared to approach her because of her dog. So when he catches her eye, too, maybe she makes the first move and helps him get over his fear? Thanks! X





	Are you afraid of dogs?

The first time Dennis had seen her was four weeks ago. It had been just before 7 in the morning and he’d slowly made his way to the fire station for the start of his shift. Just like every day he would pass the park right next to his work but this morning something was different.

It was a girl around his age and she was breathtaking! Her y/h/c hair was blowing in the mild spring breeze and the early morning sun made her skin glow. He’d never seen her before and he’d definitely have noticed her, it was hard not to! His whole body was drawn to her and it took his all to not stare for too long. Instead he shyly cast a glance over every now and then. All his senses told him to talk to her, invite her for a drink, simply say hi.

The only thing stopping him from going over there was: her dog. Despite it being just a small Yorkie he was terrified and just the thought of having to face the animal almost made him break out in sweat. He could see the little pup jumping and running around, causing its owner to smile widely - which in turn let Dennis own corners of the mouth rise in amusement. Still, Dennis was too afraid to cross the street and that didn’t change for the next couple of weeks.

Every single morning he would see her pretty face walking her dog, always at the exact same time. And every single morning he would pass her and vanish into the station without saying a word to her.

But that wasn’t everything, no. After just a couple of days he noticed that the morning wasn’t the only time she’d walk her dog. It was always around lunch time he would see her as well, her and that tiny beast…

Dennis sighed. It had been ages since he last dated a girl and now that he finally was interested in one he couldn’t talk to her. He even contemplated going to therapy to get over his fear just to be able to say hi to her. Surely there had to be a way, right?

He noticed once again how gorgeous she was, even though he was far up on the roof watching her from above during yet another break. Her smile made his heart happy and her laugh - he could still hear it in the distance - made him laugh too. She obviously enjoyed herself playing with her pet, chasing it through the park and trying to teach it some tricks.

He knew he was being a chicken watching her like that, but at least he was able to watch her in peace, soaking in every one of her smiles and laughs, her beautiful face and fine figure, before going back to work and having to wait until the next morning.

It didn’t take long for the rest of the crew to notice that something was up, however hard Dennis would try and act normal. But that was to be expected, especially since he suddenly preferred to have lunch breaks on his own on the roof and staring almost lovingly into the distance every morning he came in, a slight but visible smile lingering on his lips.

“Asbo,” Dennis heard Kev’s voice interrupting yet another one of his daydreams about the girl. “You okay mate?”

The blonde nodded, most likely a bit too quickly. “Yeah, ‘m fine. Why?”

“We been watching you,” Mal grinned.

“We all have,” Al added, grinning from ear to ear. “We’ve noticed you starin’ at the lass ev’ry day. So what’s up with that?”

“What do you mean?”

Kev chuckled at Dennis’ confused look and he could clearly see the panic in the rookies face as well, no matter how hard Dennis tried to hide it. “Why don’t ya just go and introduce yourself?”

“Yeah,” Rob nodded in agreement, as if it was the easiest thing in the world, “invite her to the pub…”

“…or for a coffee…”

“Or whatever else ya fancy, eh?” Al wiggled his eyebrows, causing the rest of the team to snicker.

“I’m afraid of dogs okay,” he blurted out, nervously and angry.

Silence hit the room. And it wouldn’t stop for quite a while.

“That it?” Al was the first to break the tension.

Dennis felt the heat rushing into his cheeks. Why did they have to bring it up? Now he stood there, all embarrassed and feeling like a total creep. Defeated he collapsed on the sofa. Why did his life have to be so complicated?

“You shouldn’t let that stop ya. From what I’ve seen facin that dog’d be worth it.”

Dennis let his head slump down on the headrest and took a deep breath. He knew Kev had a point but they had no idea how hard it was for him to get over his fear. He hated dogs and just the thought of them gave him goosebumps. Yes, he’d definitely fallen for her just by watching her every day for the last month, but imagining himself facing the animal almost caused a panic attack within him. Thankfully enough, the alarm went off and within a second he had jumped up and followed the rest of the White Watch to the trucks.

Another week passed and just like every morning he made his way to work. He felt excitement and fear at the same time seeing her and her pet, but he frowned when he noticed that she wasn’t there. He scanned the area but she was nowhere to be seen.

Dennis had almost made it to the station and that’s when he saw her, standing just a couple of feet away from the fire stations entrance, her dog laying on the ground next to her. His heart started racing and he gulped with every step he took until he came to a stop in front of her - at a safe distance.

“Hey…hi,” he could hear her lovely voice, the nervousness clear in her tone. “I’m Y/N,” she introduced herself smiling.

He nodded friendly, albeit anxious himself. “Dennis,” was the only thing he could say, letting his eyes wander from her to her dog and back.

“It probably sounds strange and super stupid, but I’ve been noticing you for quite some time,” she managed to say, her words making him take a deep breath. “I always wondered if… maybe you’d like to meet up one day?”

She smiled, flustered, her rosy cheeks turning a shade darker. And that’s when her dog decided to let out a small, but loud bark at him. Dennis jumped back, his heart skipping a beat at the noise and his hands getting sweaty.

“Bucky,” she whispered to the animal, then turning back to the young man in front of her. “I’m sorry about that. He gets a bit protective…”

“It’s fine… it’s fine…” Dennis muttered, more to himself than to her, trying to calm himself. He was finally talking to her, could he not for some time ignore his fears?

He saw her expression change. It was almost as if she was searching for something in his face.

“Are you afraid of dogs?”

Dennis gulped. What should he reply to that? Be honest and destroy the only chance he probably had with her? Lie and most likely die of anxiety and a full blown panic attack? The way he saw it, no matter which way it’d go, he was screwed. He let his shoulders slump down and a sad emotion washed over him.

“You don’t have to be afraid,” Y/N directed at him, “he might be protective but he is also very loving and loves meeting new people. I could introduce you two, if you want?”

The blonde could feel his heart starting to race. He wasn’t exactly sure what the cause was. The fact that she was so understanding? That he was ready to get over his fear and actually try to befriend a dog? That she obviously was as interested in him as he was in her?

A thousand thoughts rushed through his mind but they all got shut down quickly when he felt himself nod and watch her get on her knee to take the little animal into her hands. He followed her suit, however slowly, and soon found himself kneeling next to them.

“Dennis, this is Bucky,” the girl introduced, holding the dog firmly and one of its paws towards him.

The pet was calm, almost expectantly looking at him while she showed him a charming smile he couldn’t resist. It was now or never, he thought, taking one last deep breath before guiding his shaky hand towards the furry little dog. Just a blink later he felt a tiny tongue licking over his fingers.

“See, he likes you.”

“I suppose,” he grinned proudly.

That was a lot easier than he had expected and a part of him felt disappointment in himself for waiting so long to say hi to her.

“So, would you like to meet up sometime?”

Dennis looked into the girls y/e/c eyes. “I’d love to!”

They both shared a broad smile when all of a sudden clapping and cheering could be heard from inside the station - much to Dennis’ embarrassment.


End file.
